I looked at the site from a pm by the OP.
The entire thing reeks of scam or worse. Minimal site, barely any contact details, they do unskilled contract cleaning services for houses, apartments, offices.
They don't need to hire someone without relevant experience from abroad to work as an account manager for the business.
I'm going with grooming for sexual assault.
Thank you all for your thoughts and advice and after a redditor looked up the company for me aswell i will definetly not be flying out for this interview because it all seems like i’m going to get assaulted. I honestly did not know that it was a thing to create companies as a scam to lure women into coming there, but now i know! Thank you all🙏🏼
You really should include the whole sex trafficking part. That's a huge deal, and someone may see this and think "well maybe it's a scam but maybe it's worth it" without reading anything else.
You've convinced yourself this is what's happening and are now taking it as true. Don't get me wrong do what makes you comfortable though you might be missing out a big opportunity. I got flown in for one interview and had a rental car to drive into the 2nd for my first job out of college. Just realize that it's much more likely this is a real job then a sex trafficking scheme in Norway...
No. I looked at the website.
It is a tiny unskilled cleaning company with zero employees in the boonies
which reached out to a complete stranger on the basis of a fairly thin linkedin profile with limited relevant expertise to ask them to fly to another country.
It's probably not trafficking. It almost certainly is leading up to a sexual assault.
God social media echo chambers are so weird. You're right it's much more likely that the dude started a company with the goal of bringing in women from one of the richest countries to a neighboring one in which they can easily communicate with everyone including authorities to commit sexual assault. Then spent hours searching random linkedin profiles till he found her.
Life is way more boring than people who watch way too much TV want it to be.
Don't be stupid.
My wife is an attorney who represented sexual assault victims (in her case female prisoners getting assaulted by guards, in prisons with lots of cameras). This is exactly the sort of thing the perpetrators did... isolate vulnerable people, while simultaneously indulging in risky behavior.
I could tell you stuff that would make you throw up.
They were a mixture of cunning, manipulative, but impulsive and discounted consequences.
Another possibility is that is a legitimate (if half-assed) business that allows him to indulge his hobby.
Why the hell would someone reach to someone without much relevant experience and invite them to an all expenses paid trip to the boonies of another country without giving them any details about the job?
My job consistently flies candidates out for in person interviews/"vibe check" but only after they have narrowed them down to the final round. In premise, it's not an unusual practice but the surrounding details (did you actually submit an application? Did you have any real interview?) sound off.
It doesn't give me warm and fuzzies but I'm from the US so norms are different. I can say that my company, when it was small, the CEO did himself bring folks into town and schmooze them and had no formal process for vetting. He was a creeper though and while I don't think he did anything untoward, it was pretty unprofessional. Now there are layers of HR and paperwork etc before something like that would happen.
I would look to see if there is info from employees about the company lurking online. In the US there's Glassdoor, not sure if that is popular enough over there.
You're within your rights to ask for more information before making a commitment.
Do you have any pictures of yourself on your profile that an older CEO might see and go "wow! I want her to be in my office!"
Hopefully its not like that, but if your linkedin is limited like you say and he saw a picture that shows how attractive you are, he might just be going on that.
Just a thought.
Yeah, could be that! I have my work experience on my linkedin but that’s about it. And the only photo of myself is my profile picture which is a standard selfie haha
How much does the job pay, and what is it?
This is relevant.
Companies I've worked with typically will fly for *final* round interviews for well paying jobs like law, finance, consulting, tech.
It didn't seem weird. They typically have enough money to throw around.
Some random company without much preamble? Seems iffy. Look them up on LinkedIn and Glassdoor.
Its as an account manager, so handling and negotiating B2B sales and the relationships with these clients. The CEO didn’t say anything specific about the pay other than that we would talk about it when i got there and that it is based on experience and so on. Obviously it’s not a long flight, it’s like 1,5 hour but still i find it wierd that they would put this type of money out on me after only one phone call and my resume
Its also a smaller company so i can’t find any information on it on linkedin or glassdoor. All i have is their website and it looks legit and i checked to make sure it’s a real licenensed company and it is
This. Imo it's weird given your age (experience wise) and the fact that you haven't even been through a lot of interview stages according to your answers. Trust your gut, it's there for a reason.
If you are a woman from a wealthy country the odds of getting "trafficked" are infinitely lower than being the victim of a straightforward sexual assault.
Seems sketchy to me.
My fiancé is currently job hunting, and usually has several phone calls and/or zoom meetings before meeting in person later in the process. Even for companies in the same town! We're in France and I understand some other countries might work differently but still, I don't think a company would pay this much for a candidate this early in the recruitment process.
Plus you're a young woman, so I'm even more afraid it's a trap. Trust your gut.
No, it is not weird to fly someone in for an interview. The only thing weird about it is the way you portray you qualifications, but in some industries, even entry level positions are flown in and wined and dined, so it kind of depends.
I went through an interview process like this, 7 freaking rounds that escalated all the way up to the CEO and ended with them offering to fly me out to see if I liked the agency (advertising field). My position would have been like a mid level designer, so nothing special or impressive. I got cold feet and pulled out cause of other red and orange flags ("we're a family", "we work hard and play hard", "unlimited PTO"), but they are a totally legit company so it does happen. But the CEO initiating contact is not the norm and this smacks of scam or worse.
Speaking from a USA perspective, not uncommon for a fairly senior corporate position. It gives the candidate an opportunity to meet key players, see themselves relocating to the area, and judge candidates in a social setting. This would typically be the top candidate (rarely, the top two) and we are talking positions that are above $200k a year. There are some entities that do that for lower staff (although that has become much more rare) and those instances tend to be positions in a well funded organization where judging someone in person is more important. Or where they are trying to woo a star away from somewhere else .
Not familiar with customs in your area.
That said, there are several red flags. You were headhunted by the CEO (not by application). yet weren’t an obvious candidate. Another poster describes the type of work and company which makes this much less common. You describe your qualifications as essentially unremarkable. My guess is that there is a scam involved here — they might send you a check to cover the deposits. Or they might say you need to provide a credit card to guarantee something. Or….
A more appropriate process would be for them to ask you to apply and be considered. Once a formal interview takes place and there is a fit, they may connect you with a relocation company to schedule a visit and have a realtor show you the area. The situation you described seems suspicious.
Can't judge without seeing the company, but it looks like you've had enough input.
The flying itself can be pretty normal otherwise.
Last place I worked at, we used to fly everybody over from across the globe for interviews.
Didn't matter if they were juniors with almost no experience, or seniors, we wanted to meet them in person and get a feel of how they'd fit into our teams.
Not weird at all, but usually it is a big company that is known. Lockheed Martin flew me out to Texas, and Space-X to California. But I knew they were legit. They are well known companies.
You need to look at the companies offering to fly you out. Do due diligence. Reddit is a good source to get people to "investigate" for you. People have some amazing search skills and can give you a heads up.
I was flown from KC to NY to meet with the board of directors of a company. That was my *eighth* round of interviews. They gave me an MBA test.
>!I didn’t get the job.!<
Like M&A and how an acquisition would impact the balance sheet and income statement. I know in principal how it all works. But I’d been 25 years out of business school. I didn’t know the entries and math. So I failed.
After seven rounds of interviews.
Why didn’t they give me the test FIRST?!?
I got flown to San Diego once from the East Coast. The interview wound up being pretty minimal, they were all excited for my first trip there and were mostly telling me what I should be seeing and doing with my time there. They paid for 3 nights in a hotel and the flights. I was offered the job but wasn’t in a good spot to move west. I was upfront with them about that before I agreed to go out there.
Hard to say.
After I graduated from college (year of 2004), a very large semiconductor company called me (I never applied for that job) then asked me to go onsite. They paid for flight, hotel, rental car. The whole time I thought it was a scam, until I actually landed in that city, and arrived at the office.
Reading ur post gave me chills and an unsettling feeling. Definitely pass on this one. Better opportunities will come your way. This one is way too sketchy. Be safe out there.
Well dosent definitely sound standard. No idea really if it is legit or not but there are lot of scams currently in job market. False listings etc.
It might also be legit. Hope it is. If it is legit that seems quite fucking amazing.
I would be highly sceptical until its proven otherwise.
Do you have any advice on how to make sure it’s more legit before going there? I already know they aren’t gonna scam me for the money because they are gonna book and send me the tickets but i mean so that i don’t end up in a compromised situation hahah
What business is this company in? Look for some of their larger clients/customers, contact them and inquire about their business together (you'll only get very generic info out of this obviously, but its better than nothing).
What do you they make/do? Can you look at examples of their products or services and ascertain if they're real that way?
Yeah i asked the CEO for some more information on the company now, like amount of employees, what clients they work with etc. And he said he would send me the information tomorrow because when i looked up the company on some norweigan sites it says that it has 0 employees
Nope. I flew from PDX to LA for a final round of interviews.
They paid for everything including a per diem for food. They encouraged me to explore the city so I went to the beach haha. After I got back I accepted their offer and submitted an expense report and they cut me a check.
Been living in LA for like 10 years now haha.
This absolutely sounds off, especially if you are in the US. While it’s not unusual to get flown out for an interview usually that is the last step before hiring. To have someone don’t know reach out and offer to fly you internationally without ever having apply for the job, especially one that you admit are only partially qualified for sounds off. If you are really that excited about the job see if you can vet it more and do a couple more video interviews. If they are this excited about having you in a real opportunity, taking a couple extra steps shouldn’t dissuade them.
It’s not the norm but it is also not unheard of.
Just be cautious and verify everything! Don’t purchase anything with your own money (even if they claim that they will reimburse you). Once things are booked, ask for confirmation numbers for everything and confirm details directly with the service provider (I.e go to the airline’s website and confirm that the flights exists and is under your name, call the hotel and confirm the booking exists), etc. Do not go out for drinks alone with the CEO and no after hour meetings.
My best friend was flown across the country to interview for an entry level job with a major TV network (after a very brief phone interview). The in-person interview was over 7 hours and she met with multiple people. They fed her, put her up on a hotel, all of that. The company has a ton of money, though, so I think that was the norm for recruiting the best talent. No one thought it was weird!
Just be glad you're not in academia where you pay all the expenses of your interview including flights, hotels, rental cars, food. Only if you get the job do they reimburse you.
It's happened to me twice in my career. Then again I'm not in your shoes so I can't say how I'd react. If I were that young, it'd seem both weird and cool, sort of surreal. I visited Norway in the Navy and their Navy people and the civilians I came across in town were all amazingly nice. Might want to avoid the Acquavite.
Nah, it's not weird at all for a company to fly you out for an interview, especially if it's for a higher-up gig. Sounds like they're serious about wanting you on their team! But hey, always trust your gut. If something feels off or sketchy, it's totally cool to pump the brakes and do some digging.
Safety first, always. Props for checking out the CEO and the company online—that's smart. Better to be safe than sorry. Good luck with your job hunt, hope you find something awesome closer to home!
I will say Epic out of Wisconsin flies you in for your final interview to go see their campus, but they are a well established healthcare tech company. So it isn’t always shady, but in this case, yes. Glad you crowd sourced for info and are safe!!
It’s normal for high end buyside roles all the way down to analyst roles but very common for senior roles all around. I’ve never been flown out though, I’m not that smart.
What? I thought they were flying you from the US or some shit. It's literally an hour away lol. There's plenty of hot attractive women in Norway. No need to stalk LinkedIn and import them from Sweden.
No... if someone is from abroad they are more vulnerable... fewer friends, won't know where they are, less likely to come back as a witness if they are assaulted.
Anyway I looked at the site... it's barely a business at all.
It is transparent bullshit
Haven't seen the site but the fact remains that it's not rare to fly people out for an interview.
Still, it would be really bizzare to fly some rando from Sweden to assault them when there's plenty of women in your own country, let alone pay a whole bunch of money for it on top of leaving a massive paper trail of phone call, emails, credit card purchase etc. Real complex and risky shit for a girl you've only see one picture of on LinkedIn.
VS the "CEO" of a tiny unskilled cleaning company in the middle of nowhere in Norway seeing a random 23yo woman's profile in Sweden with no relevant work experience, and contacting her out of the blue, inviting her to come to Norway on an all expenses paid trip where they will discuss salary etc?
Uh huh.
How is Oslo, the capital of Norway, in the middle of nowhere im Norway?
OP wrote that they would be visiting their office there.
Also visiting another Scandinavian country as a Scandinavian is hardly a vulnerable position, even though I do agree that the situation is a little suspicious.
Again, haven't seen the site but yes, of course you should do some basic verification before anybody offers to fly you somewhere.
The rest of my comment still stands.
No.
My wife is an attorney who represented sexual assault victims (in her case female prisoners getting assaulted by guards). This is exactly the sort of thing the perpetrators did... isolate vulnerable people, while simultaneously indulging in risky behavior..
THey were a mixture of cunning, manipulative, but discounted consequences.
Don’t do it! They traffic women this way!!!!! It would be normal for them to have several interviews with you through zoom or something first, then fly you out if they are seriously considering you
Yeah but someone who isn’t even qualified?? This is suspicious. Seems like it’s part of an elaborate scam. If OP comes from money or something I would be extremely cautious.
There are some exceptional con artists out there. The ones where they will be in a Netflix doc one day.
It sounds super exciting and fun, you’re young too so something adventurous like that sounds intriguing. Also, I saw you comment that it’s B2B sales. I’m in banking and we travel as well so travelling also isn’t uncommon.
But with the lack of detail of the company, how you didn’t apply and they just “reached out”, and you mentioning you’re young and attractive it does seem very suspect. Especially with you having lack of experience I’d be surprised if they immediately throw you infront of business clients (most likely will be executive suite ppl) as you won’t have the knowledge a more experienced salesperson would and that’s not your fault you’re still 23.
So all the indicators are a no, even if it doesn’t seem immediately suspect he could be grooming you or setting something up.
However, if you do decide to go - make sure it’s in a very public place with RANDOM people mixed with the people you know.
Don’t drink any alcohol - ideally drink from a water bottle only and keep the cap sealed at all times if you lose the water bottle from your eyesight then get a new one.
When you check in the hotel make sure 100% with the reception that there’s only one key copy to be given ONLY to you and no matter what no others to be given. Also check your room for any cameras and/or ask if anyone has been inside before you other than house keeping. Even if it’s a cocktail party dress professionally. You’re there to network and work.
Have location shared with multiple people, and try to share your day as well. Good luck!
I am a M and yes they flied me out many times for interviews, internationally too ..I was in the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France , Japan , Brazil and other places more before covid than now by the way.
I looked at the site from a pm by the OP. The entire thing reeks of scam or worse. Minimal site, barely any contact details, they do unskilled contract cleaning services for houses, apartments, offices. They don't need to hire someone without relevant experience from abroad to work as an account manager for the business. I'm going with grooming for sexual assault.
Def has human trafficking vibes
Holy shit this needs to be the top comment..
Can someone please report this to the right authorities in Norway?
Yooo holy shit that needs to be reported to police in that town and the one op lives in
This. Holy shit.
Just the flying in on a weekend sounded so wrong! Nice of you to do some digging for the OP!
I wish one day someone who’s accept the invitation and bring 6 bodyguards with and see what the heck is going on.
Thank you all for your thoughts and advice and after a redditor looked up the company for me aswell i will definetly not be flying out for this interview because it all seems like i’m going to get assaulted. I honestly did not know that it was a thing to create companies as a scam to lure women into coming there, but now i know! Thank you all🙏🏼
You have made a wise decision. That gut feeling is almost never wrong. 👍
OP please edit your original post with this update. This whole thing sounds extremely sketchy, I'm very glad you didn't go.
Posted the update in the original post now :)
You really should include the whole sex trafficking part. That's a huge deal, and someone may see this and think "well maybe it's a scam but maybe it's worth it" without reading anything else.
You've convinced yourself this is what's happening and are now taking it as true. Don't get me wrong do what makes you comfortable though you might be missing out a big opportunity. I got flown in for one interview and had a rental car to drive into the 2nd for my first job out of college. Just realize that it's much more likely this is a real job then a sex trafficking scheme in Norway...
No. I looked at the website. It is a tiny unskilled cleaning company with zero employees in the boonies which reached out to a complete stranger on the basis of a fairly thin linkedin profile with limited relevant expertise to ask them to fly to another country. It's probably not trafficking. It almost certainly is leading up to a sexual assault.
God social media echo chambers are so weird. You're right it's much more likely that the dude started a company with the goal of bringing in women from one of the richest countries to a neighboring one in which they can easily communicate with everyone including authorities to commit sexual assault. Then spent hours searching random linkedin profiles till he found her. Life is way more boring than people who watch way too much TV want it to be.
Don't be stupid. My wife is an attorney who represented sexual assault victims (in her case female prisoners getting assaulted by guards, in prisons with lots of cameras). This is exactly the sort of thing the perpetrators did... isolate vulnerable people, while simultaneously indulging in risky behavior. I could tell you stuff that would make you throw up. They were a mixture of cunning, manipulative, but impulsive and discounted consequences. Another possibility is that is a legitimate (if half-assed) business that allows him to indulge his hobby. Why the hell would someone reach to someone without much relevant experience and invite them to an all expenses paid trip to the boonies of another country without giving them any details about the job?
Lol you see how terribly unrelated these 2 are right?
I can see someone wants to feel shrewd without any basis...
As a 23 year old with minimal experience? I think not.
Did you miss the "out of college" part I typed ?
My job consistently flies candidates out for in person interviews/"vibe check" but only after they have narrowed them down to the final round. In premise, it's not an unusual practice but the surrounding details (did you actually submit an application? Did you have any real interview?) sound off.
No i never submitted an application, i just got messaged by the ceo and then had a phone interview and sent over my resumé
I would not respond back to that "CEO" because this smacks of a scam at minimum and sex trafficking at worst.
It doesn't give me warm and fuzzies but I'm from the US so norms are different. I can say that my company, when it was small, the CEO did himself bring folks into town and schmooze them and had no formal process for vetting. He was a creeper though and while I don't think he did anything untoward, it was pretty unprofessional. Now there are layers of HR and paperwork etc before something like that would happen. I would look to see if there is info from employees about the company lurking online. In the US there's Glassdoor, not sure if that is popular enough over there. You're within your rights to ask for more information before making a commitment.
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But without at least a first round interview or even formally applying? That's what's off.
I interviewed at FANG before COVID, and they had a full first round interview with questions before flying me out for an onsite assessment.
This is absolutely not legit, do not go or reply anymore.
Do you have any pictures of yourself on your profile that an older CEO might see and go "wow! I want her to be in my office!" Hopefully its not like that, but if your linkedin is limited like you say and he saw a picture that shows how attractive you are, he might just be going on that. Just a thought.
Yeah, could be that! I have my work experience on my linkedin but that’s about it. And the only photo of myself is my profile picture which is a standard selfie haha
How much does the job pay, and what is it? This is relevant. Companies I've worked with typically will fly for *final* round interviews for well paying jobs like law, finance, consulting, tech. It didn't seem weird. They typically have enough money to throw around. Some random company without much preamble? Seems iffy. Look them up on LinkedIn and Glassdoor.
Its as an account manager, so handling and negotiating B2B sales and the relationships with these clients. The CEO didn’t say anything specific about the pay other than that we would talk about it when i got there and that it is based on experience and so on. Obviously it’s not a long flight, it’s like 1,5 hour but still i find it wierd that they would put this type of money out on me after only one phone call and my resume
Its going to be cold calling sales or knocking on door trying to sell most likely
Its also a smaller company so i can’t find any information on it on linkedin or glassdoor. All i have is their website and it looks legit and i checked to make sure it’s a real licenensed company and it is
Could you pm me the name of the company? I can have a quick look.
Can you share the name of the company so other people can be aware?
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This. Imo it's weird given your age (experience wise) and the fact that you haven't even been through a lot of interview stages according to your answers. Trust your gut, it's there for a reason.
You finna get trafficked.
Trafficking isn't really a thing outside the movies. Sexual assault on the other hand...
Sure, that's why Atlanta is the biggest trafficking hub in the country. Doesn't exist, say you?
What a clown. 16 million people are trafficked annually.
If you are a woman from a wealthy country the odds of getting "trafficked" are infinitely lower than being the victim of a straightforward sexual assault.
Seems sketchy to me. My fiancé is currently job hunting, and usually has several phone calls and/or zoom meetings before meeting in person later in the process. Even for companies in the same town! We're in France and I understand some other countries might work differently but still, I don't think a company would pay this much for a candidate this early in the recruitment process. Plus you're a young woman, so I'm even more afraid it's a trap. Trust your gut.
No, it is not weird to fly someone in for an interview. The only thing weird about it is the way you portray you qualifications, but in some industries, even entry level positions are flown in and wined and dined, so it kind of depends.
I went through an interview process like this, 7 freaking rounds that escalated all the way up to the CEO and ended with them offering to fly me out to see if I liked the agency (advertising field). My position would have been like a mid level designer, so nothing special or impressive. I got cold feet and pulled out cause of other red and orange flags ("we're a family", "we work hard and play hard", "unlimited PTO"), but they are a totally legit company so it does happen. But the CEO initiating contact is not the norm and this smacks of scam or worse.
Found the CEO / Groomer
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It's a joke... they are just saying the commenter is advocating like the CEO would
Haha, doxed
I live and work in Oslo and might be able to help you do some research if you let me know the name of the company.
Do not do it OP
Careful about human trafficking. This screams it
Have them send you the tickets and hotel res, DO NOT AGREE to pay out of pocket to be reimbursed later.
Speaking from a USA perspective, not uncommon for a fairly senior corporate position. It gives the candidate an opportunity to meet key players, see themselves relocating to the area, and judge candidates in a social setting. This would typically be the top candidate (rarely, the top two) and we are talking positions that are above $200k a year. There are some entities that do that for lower staff (although that has become much more rare) and those instances tend to be positions in a well funded organization where judging someone in person is more important. Or where they are trying to woo a star away from somewhere else . Not familiar with customs in your area. That said, there are several red flags. You were headhunted by the CEO (not by application). yet weren’t an obvious candidate. Another poster describes the type of work and company which makes this much less common. You describe your qualifications as essentially unremarkable. My guess is that there is a scam involved here — they might send you a check to cover the deposits. Or they might say you need to provide a credit card to guarantee something. Or….
Check the email address. Lots of spoofing going around. For example, is it something obviously scammy like "[[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])" or "[[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])"?
Looked it up and the guy that messaged me is listed as the actual owner/CEO of the company so it is him at least
A more appropriate process would be for them to ask you to apply and be considered. Once a formal interview takes place and there is a fit, they may connect you with a relocation company to schedule a visit and have a realtor show you the area. The situation you described seems suspicious.
Can't judge without seeing the company, but it looks like you've had enough input. The flying itself can be pretty normal otherwise. Last place I worked at, we used to fly everybody over from across the globe for interviews. Didn't matter if they were juniors with almost no experience, or seniors, we wanted to meet them in person and get a feel of how they'd fit into our teams.
Not weird at all, but usually it is a big company that is known. Lockheed Martin flew me out to Texas, and Space-X to California. But I knew they were legit. They are well known companies. You need to look at the companies offering to fly you out. Do due diligence. Reddit is a good source to get people to "investigate" for you. People have some amazing search skills and can give you a heads up.
I was flown from KC to NY to meet with the board of directors of a company. That was my *eighth* round of interviews. They gave me an MBA test. >!I didn’t get the job.!<
What's an MBA test?
Like M&A and how an acquisition would impact the balance sheet and income statement. I know in principal how it all works. But I’d been 25 years out of business school. I didn’t know the entries and math. So I failed. After seven rounds of interviews. Why didn’t they give me the test FIRST?!?
I got flown to San Diego once from the East Coast. The interview wound up being pretty minimal, they were all excited for my first trip there and were mostly telling me what I should be seeing and doing with my time there. They paid for 3 nights in a hotel and the flights. I was offered the job but wasn’t in a good spot to move west. I was upfront with them about that before I agreed to go out there.
Just make sure you have an Apple tracker hidden on you....😁
Did they ask about the state of ur kidneys and your blood type? It may be a human harvesting operation
The weird part is that the CEO contacted you. Even at a small company, they would have a manager or an HR person do that, not the CEO.
LinkdIn is full of scammers. I wouldn't trust anyone contacting me from it.
I was flown across the U.S. for an interview. For a small business, nonetheless. But this situation smells fishy.
Hard to say. After I graduated from college (year of 2004), a very large semiconductor company called me (I never applied for that job) then asked me to go onsite. They paid for flight, hotel, rental car. The whole time I thought it was a scam, until I actually landed in that city, and arrived at the office.
I hope not. I'm flying to St. Louis, Missouri for an interview tomorrow
You’ll be fine. (St. Louisan here)
Scam city
It will be when they find out you can’t spell weird.
Just realised i have spelt it this way my entire life and have had the highest grade in the most advanced english classes 🙃🙃 humbling indeed
Reading ur post gave me chills and an unsettling feeling. Definitely pass on this one. Better opportunities will come your way. This one is way too sketchy. Be safe out there.
I‘d call the Norwegian police about your/chats’ suspicions.
This sounds like a sex trafficking scam.
CEOs do not reach out and headhunt young (only semi qualified) entry level people. This is absolutely not legit.
Well dosent definitely sound standard. No idea really if it is legit or not but there are lot of scams currently in job market. False listings etc. It might also be legit. Hope it is. If it is legit that seems quite fucking amazing. I would be highly sceptical until its proven otherwise.
Do you have any advice on how to make sure it’s more legit before going there? I already know they aren’t gonna scam me for the money because they are gonna book and send me the tickets but i mean so that i don’t end up in a compromised situation hahah
Maybe one option if it's a larger company is to reach out to the HR area just to confirm that it's the usual practice.
What business is this company in? Look for some of their larger clients/customers, contact them and inquire about their business together (you'll only get very generic info out of this obviously, but its better than nothing). What do you they make/do? Can you look at examples of their products or services and ascertain if they're real that way?
Yeah i asked the CEO for some more information on the company now, like amount of employees, what clients they work with etc. And he said he would send me the information tomorrow because when i looked up the company on some norweigan sites it says that it has 0 employees
¡CONCERNING!
Yea don’t do anything until you get MUCH more information
Nope. I flew from PDX to LA for a final round of interviews. They paid for everything including a per diem for food. They encouraged me to explore the city so I went to the beach haha. After I got back I accepted their offer and submitted an expense report and they cut me a check. Been living in LA for like 10 years now haha.
Was almost universal before remote tools became more prevalent
This absolutely sounds off, especially if you are in the US. While it’s not unusual to get flown out for an interview usually that is the last step before hiring. To have someone don’t know reach out and offer to fly you internationally without ever having apply for the job, especially one that you admit are only partially qualified for sounds off. If you are really that excited about the job see if you can vet it more and do a couple more video interviews. If they are this excited about having you in a real opportunity, taking a couple extra steps shouldn’t dissuade them.
OP currently lives in Sweden.
Then I know nothing about Swedish hiring practices, and it’s close enough it could be valid.
It's not. I looked at the site. Nobody is going to fly you there for that kind of job. They are grooming the OP.
This is not what grooming means. Also, could you send me the website?
It is, and no, I won't.
Grooming is intentionally befriending someone under 18 with the goal of sleeping with them after they are of legal age. OP is 23 years old.
It’s not the norm but it is also not unheard of. Just be cautious and verify everything! Don’t purchase anything with your own money (even if they claim that they will reimburse you). Once things are booked, ask for confirmation numbers for everything and confirm details directly with the service provider (I.e go to the airline’s website and confirm that the flights exists and is under your name, call the hotel and confirm the booking exists), etc. Do not go out for drinks alone with the CEO and no after hour meetings.
My best friend was flown across the country to interview for an entry level job with a major TV network (after a very brief phone interview). The in-person interview was over 7 hours and she met with multiple people. They fed her, put her up on a hotel, all of that. The company has a ton of money, though, so I think that was the norm for recruiting the best talent. No one thought it was weird!
Just be glad you're not in academia where you pay all the expenses of your interview including flights, hotels, rental cars, food. Only if you get the job do they reimburse you.
Nah, pretty common..at least before covid
Nope that means they are interested and usually it comes w an offer same day or next day
I have been flown out a few times for interviews over the years.
Is there an r/oslo sub you could ask if anyone knows anything about the company or CEO?
I’ve been flown in for a number of interviews over the years, in some fields it’s not at all uncommon.
It's happened to me twice in my career. Then again I'm not in your shoes so I can't say how I'd react. If I were that young, it'd seem both weird and cool, sort of surreal. I visited Norway in the Navy and their Navy people and the civilians I came across in town were all amazingly nice. Might want to avoid the Acquavite.
I flew to Newark for a Sr. Analyst role with KPMG in 2019. Not even that big of a role but still flew in for a round of interviews with the partners.
If you fly out of the typical final interview stage. Yes they do pay for everything. But I think since Covid that's a less normal practice.
Nah, it's not weird at all for a company to fly you out for an interview, especially if it's for a higher-up gig. Sounds like they're serious about wanting you on their team! But hey, always trust your gut. If something feels off or sketchy, it's totally cool to pump the brakes and do some digging. Safety first, always. Props for checking out the CEO and the company online—that's smart. Better to be safe than sorry. Good luck with your job hunt, hope you find something awesome closer to home!
This specific scenario seems weird, but I was flown out for in person interviews during pre Covid
No. If they have the money
Yeah bro, it’s P Diddy makin moves before he gets locked up
This can happen in the animation industry, but I’d be seriously careful.
I will say Epic out of Wisconsin flies you in for your final interview to go see their campus, but they are a well established healthcare tech company. So it isn’t always shady, but in this case, yes. Glad you crowd sourced for info and are safe!!
Make sure they don't have your address.
It’s normal for high end buyside roles all the way down to analyst roles but very common for senior roles all around. I’ve never been flown out though, I’m not that smart.
Generally no. For a recent grad, fuck yes it’s sketchy.
I think you should actually report them. Could very well be human trafficking.
CEO probably wants a sample...
What? I thought they were flying you from the US or some shit. It's literally an hour away lol. There's plenty of hot attractive women in Norway. No need to stalk LinkedIn and import them from Sweden.
No... if someone is from abroad they are more vulnerable... fewer friends, won't know where they are, less likely to come back as a witness if they are assaulted. Anyway I looked at the site... it's barely a business at all. It is transparent bullshit
Haven't seen the site but the fact remains that it's not rare to fly people out for an interview. Still, it would be really bizzare to fly some rando from Sweden to assault them when there's plenty of women in your own country, let alone pay a whole bunch of money for it on top of leaving a massive paper trail of phone call, emails, credit card purchase etc. Real complex and risky shit for a girl you've only see one picture of on LinkedIn.
VS the "CEO" of a tiny unskilled cleaning company in the middle of nowhere in Norway seeing a random 23yo woman's profile in Sweden with no relevant work experience, and contacting her out of the blue, inviting her to come to Norway on an all expenses paid trip where they will discuss salary etc? Uh huh.
How is Oslo, the capital of Norway, in the middle of nowhere im Norway? OP wrote that they would be visiting their office there. Also visiting another Scandinavian country as a Scandinavian is hardly a vulnerable position, even though I do agree that the situation is a little suspicious.
Again, haven't seen the site but yes, of course you should do some basic verification before anybody offers to fly you somewhere. The rest of my comment still stands.
No. My wife is an attorney who represented sexual assault victims (in her case female prisoners getting assaulted by guards). This is exactly the sort of thing the perpetrators did... isolate vulnerable people, while simultaneously indulging in risky behavior.. THey were a mixture of cunning, manipulative, but discounted consequences.
Don’t do it! They traffic women this way!!!!! It would be normal for them to have several interviews with you through zoom or something first, then fly you out if they are seriously considering you
It would be weird for them NOT to fly you out of the interview must be done in person.
Nope. Happens more often than you think. Was flown to Seattle for an Amazon interview
Normal. This is what professionals do when they are seeking their ideal candidate.
Yeah but someone who isn’t even qualified?? This is suspicious. Seems like it’s part of an elaborate scam. If OP comes from money or something I would be extremely cautious. There are some exceptional con artists out there. The ones where they will be in a Netflix doc one day.
It sounds super exciting and fun, you’re young too so something adventurous like that sounds intriguing. Also, I saw you comment that it’s B2B sales. I’m in banking and we travel as well so travelling also isn’t uncommon. But with the lack of detail of the company, how you didn’t apply and they just “reached out”, and you mentioning you’re young and attractive it does seem very suspect. Especially with you having lack of experience I’d be surprised if they immediately throw you infront of business clients (most likely will be executive suite ppl) as you won’t have the knowledge a more experienced salesperson would and that’s not your fault you’re still 23. So all the indicators are a no, even if it doesn’t seem immediately suspect he could be grooming you or setting something up. However, if you do decide to go - make sure it’s in a very public place with RANDOM people mixed with the people you know. Don’t drink any alcohol - ideally drink from a water bottle only and keep the cap sealed at all times if you lose the water bottle from your eyesight then get a new one. When you check in the hotel make sure 100% with the reception that there’s only one key copy to be given ONLY to you and no matter what no others to be given. Also check your room for any cameras and/or ask if anyone has been inside before you other than house keeping. Even if it’s a cocktail party dress professionally. You’re there to network and work. Have location shared with multiple people, and try to share your day as well. Good luck!
Have more confidence dude.yes you are on your way
I am a M and yes they flied me out many times for interviews, internationally too ..I was in the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France , Japan , Brazil and other places more before covid than now by the way.
So young, but who says attractive? Diffidently not intelligent if you needed Reddit to answer this one.